London - Vogue Japan
editor and fashion icon Anna Dello Russo has withdrawn all fur coats from
sale in her archive auction with Christie's Milan on 24 February.

Instead, she has opted to donate the pieces to PETA's fur amnesty
programme, after the animals rights group wrote to her last month.
PETA is set to use the coats in high-profile educational displays to
highlight the plight of animals slaughtered for their fur or as bedding for
sick and orphaned animals in sanctuaries.

"The fashion community is increasingly moving away from fur – and so am I,"
says Anna Dello Russo in a statement. "This auction is about passing my
heritage on to the next generation – but as someone who cares about
animals, I no longer feel comfortable passing these fur garments on to
others. Instead, I've decided to donate them to PETA to ensure they're used
in a meaningful way to help animals."

"Anna Dello Russo's coats will be gratefully received," adds PETA Director
Elisa Allen. "When people learn about the pain that animals endure at the
hands of the fur industry, they often choose to send their fur items to
PETA so that we can use them in educational displays that help prevent more
animals from suffering for fashion."

PETA adds that animals which are used to living in free-roaming
environments, such as foxes, minks, and chinchillas, spend their entire
lives confined to tiny, filthy wire cages at fur farms before they are
killed in extremely cruel and inhumane ways, such as and are anal
electrocution, neck-breaking, or drowning.

Numerous designers and luxury fashion houses have pledged to stop using fur
in their collections over the recent months due to the amount of cruelty
involved in fur production, including Armani, Gucci, Michael Kors, and
Jimmy Choo.